The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

A peek into the deep, dark, gel-encrusted underbelly of America's Beauty Show

By Kirsten Kilponen & Alysse Dalessandro
Published: April 2nd, 2009 | 4:30pm

The music throbs loudly while the lights pulsate. The artist on stage speaks energetically into a pop star-style headset to the eager crowd. The headsets allow the free hands to grip a pair of shears as hair flies onto the stage. Clouds of hairspray fill the air. This is no ordinary trade show. You may never find yourself at a show like this — and we at Venus Zine never thought we would, either. This is America’s Beauty Show.

On March 28-30, 2009, beauty industry pros and wannabes gathered at Chicago’s McCormick Place to take part in America’s Beauty Show. Attendees could participate in classes, shop the showroom floor for deals, and watch models strut down the runway showing off the latest trends in hair. We went to the front lines of the War on Frizz and it’s not all pretty: wacky hair, the good and the bad of products, and the real answer behind how often Nick Arrojo of TLC’s What Not to Wear washes his hair.

Contrary to the assumption that ABS would be a rare gathering of well-coiffed locks and shining manes, it was a startling gathering of really bad hair. Instead of perfectly polished locks and cutting-edge cuts, this beauty show was busted hair city. With the exception of the always cool Vidal Sassoon team and the league of Arrojo's hipster apprentices, the show was full of stylists who were definitely heavy hairspray and gel abusers, and needed to learn that spiky, hexa-colored hair is not okay.

If that wasn't enough, there were a slew of products there that managed to make you feel uncomfortable just by looking at them — including Paris Hilton's weave collection, "God Bless America" color smocks, and Paul Mitchell's puppy line (which was honestly a little cute, but mostly disturbing). As for Hilton’s latest branding venture, a tangled mess of three-feet tracks and enormous glamour shots of the heiress covered every square inch of her stand.

As for that unsettling puppy haircare line, Paul Mitchell’s John Paul PetTM boasts "salon quality products for your pet" that "pamper, primp, and polish" them. We adore our furry little friends, but doling out forty-five dollars to be able to shampoo, condition, and wipe your dog with "Oatmeal Conditioning Rinse" and "Tea Tree Treatment Shampoo" is a little much for us.

One of the convention’s headlining attractions was TIGI’s “Image in Motion” show featuring Anthony Mascola. In between Mascola and two other male stylists showing off their cutting and styling skills on stage while dealing some massive product placement for TIGI, robotic female models walked on and off the runway. The hyper-masculinity in the presentation was palpable as TIGI Global Education Director James Morrison assured the crowd that, although the haircuts may be short, they are still “soft” and “feminine.”

Around the time Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger” began to blare through the speakers, shirtless men in boxing gloves and shorts came bouncing on stage followed by football and basketball players. As the lights dimmed, the crew wheeled a bathtub out. The male models reappeared on the stage in suits and, suddenly, one of the men ripped his shirt off and hopped in the bathtub. Ropes appeared from the ceiling and the model proceeded to wriggle his body through them in Cirque de Soleil-style. He dipped his head into the tub and came out squirting water like a dolphin at Sea World. We wondered whether the front row knew they were sitting in the splash zone? And what does the Gallagher shtick had to do with hair? We sat in disbelief as this received a standing ovation from the audience.

What TIGI failed to mention in this over-the-top and sexist production is that, during ABS, they launched a new eco-product line called Peace, Love, & the Planet. The corresponding product display featured recyclable cardboard chairs and the product packaging itself is made from 50 percent post-consumer recycled material. With natural and organic ingredients, the line features scents like Cherry Almond and Cranberry Orange Mint. A partnership with Arbor Day allows them to donate a tree for every kit of six sold.

In addition to the eco-chic line, we were also pretty excited about the nail art that glittered through the hot mess and confusion of blow dryers and hair mousse. The So Easy Stone Art stand single-handedly held down the nail art fort at the show. There were rhinestones, jewels, and gems as far as the eye could see, and for only three dollars a pack! Three buck bling!

Two full days of hairspray and nail bling is enough to make anyone antsy, so we decided to use our time at McCormick Place to solve a mystery that’s been plaguing us for some time: as guilty devotees to What Not To Wear, we’re aware that Arrojo once admitted to only washing his hair once a month. With hundred of shampoos in immediate proximity, we figure old Nick wouldn’t be able to resist temptation.

We cornered a few Arrojo apprentices and expressed our concern for their mentor’s sudsing schedule. We were met with giggles and confirmation from the fleet of assistants, but we wanted the real dirt on Arrojo’s potentially dirty hair. After cruising the vendor floor to scope out more goods, it was definitely time to stalk the celebrity stylist again. We caught him posing for photos with fawning fans, buttered him up with talk of the show, and then pulled out the big guns. "Yes, I only washed my hair about once a month when it was long,” the sultan of strands began. “[I wash] about once a week now that it's short, but I rinse it with conditioner every day!"

About his experience on What Not to Wear, Arrojo adds, “It’s an opportunity to try my skills at being able to encourage people about how to change, try something different, and see how good they feel. We are trying to make their lives a little better for them.”

Arrojo wasn’t the only pseudo- celebrity we stalked at ABS. We talked hair trends with some of the alums from Bravo’s Shear Genius. Theodore Leaf (Season One) said he’d been seeing “a lot of beautiful classic down looks like Veronica Lake waves.” Charlie Price (Season Two) reminisced about the hair of the ‘80s and early ‘90s and added, “I think that the greatest way to do retro right now is that very futuristic thing that they were doing in the ‘80s like kind of Blade Runner.”

Price also talked about his reality, post reality-show. “My career hasn’t changed in what I’m doing. It’s just that people care about what I’m doing now,” said Price. “The show has just given me such a boost in exposure; it’s incredible.”

After two days and hundreds of products, America's Beauty Show was truly an affair to remember. Sure, our ears were close to bleeding from the din of America’s chattiest professionals all gathered in one space; a couple of the presentations may have been just a little too sexist; and yeah, the show definitely put a permanent hole in the ozone layer above Chicago, but at least we have the sweet memories of stalking semi-famous celebrities from second-rate reality shows and seeing some crazy gravity-defying hairstyles (and the free swag didn’t hurt, either.) Thank you America's Beauty Show! 'Till next year.

Comments

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kelleyaccurso (11 months)
What a horribly biased article. I attended the America Beauty Show, and sure there was bad hair there. But there was also great hair. And, not to mention, if you are human, you probably have an opinion, and that opinion may differ from someone elses. You can't state your negative opinion as fact and avoid offending the thousands of women that attended the show and also the artists themselves. And about the Tigi bathtub guy... I am a woman from Missouri who went to chicago with a group of 7 girls. After spending the entire weekend with not only those 7 girls, but thousands upon thousands of women at this hair show, (discounting any men there because most of them were gay). I will say I was thrilled to see a man, along with all the other women there. Give us at least that, my god. If you didn't notice, the vast majority of the room was enjoying the performance. Back to the bad hair... you have to realize that not most of the hair done there was for every day wear. It was high fashion, certainly not made for anyone who grew up in the Bible Belt of the country. If you can't tell the difference between high fashion and every day wear then you should probably re-evaluate the direction of your career and also the shows you attend.